Lo and behold, this team put in the most laps in Barcelona!

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The first week of pre-season testing in Barcelona was a complicated affair, thanks to the unexpected vagaries of the weather.

"Let's test in Spain," they said, "It'll be warm and sunny," they thought. Unbeknownst to teams and to the entire F1 community which descended upon Barcelona, a Siberian cold front would insidiously find its way to the Circuit de Catalunya.

The first four days of running of the 2018 season disrupted team's schedules and data acquisition programmes, not to mention performance, but the accumulated mileage ranking among teams yields a very surprising result.

Toro Rosso, powered by a Honda engine which couldn't get out of its own hybrid way twelve months ago at the back of the McLaren MCL32, put 324 convincing and reliable laps under its wheels!

A good omen for the Faenza-base outfit and its engine partner which appears to have made great strides in terms of development and durability over the winter.

Predictably, the usual suspects, Mercedes and Ferrari, also stacked up the miles in Spain, but Red Bull failed to join its front-running rivals and will have a fair amount of catch-up to do next week.

The same applies to Force India which clocked in with a total of just 166 laps and a lot of work still to be achieved.

Toro Rosso - 324 laps

Mercedes - 306 laps

Ferrari - 298

Sauber - 283

Williams - 276

Renault - 273

McLaren - 260

Red Bull - 209

Haas - 187

Force India - 166

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.